“Out” and “in” at the exhibition by Claude Monet and Pierre Bonnaer at VCCA

The “dialogue” of 2 styles: One looking out to the outside world – One going deep inside offers the opportunity to discover the world’s classic painting with “silent” but “brilliant” moments. in the mind of the viewer.

Claude Monet (1840-1926) was the founder and leader of the Impressionist school of painting that started modern art. Monet’s name is familiar to many people, but this is the first time in Vietnam that his works have been introduced in an exhibition. The 20 paintings were selected for display from the 1860s to the 1920s, reflecting a length of Monet’s work with characteristics as well as changes in artistic style and aesthetic thinking.

Works such as “The Magpie” (1868 – 1869) or “La Grenouillere Beach” (1869) are typical for the early stages of composition when Monet gradually broke away from traditional painting to pursue a free style of drawing. more liberal. He sought to capture fresh visual impressions of the immediate landscape, using thick, streaked brush strokes, pillow/overlapping and vibrant, contrasting colors to express the immediate impact of light. light: is the shadow of the midwinter sun fluttering hidden on the snow-covered surface, or the glittering light streaks reflecting the blue sky mixed with green on the clear lake.

“The Magpie” (1868 – 1869) by Claude Monet.

The painting “Impression, Sunrise” (1872) is a bolder and more disruptive step in Monet’s style. Fast, broken brush strokes, hurried looks even scribbles but decisively, no longer smooth color transitions, but sudden bumps of contrasting orange-blue patches, dawn momentarily appears. full of vitality in the diffused, transformative light.

This painting, which appeared in the first independent exhibition in 1874 in Paris by Monet and like-minded painters, was criticized by critics for being “deviated” from the aesthetic concept of the time. and thus became famous. Since then, the “Impressionist” school has been born, opening the door to unprecedented free, creative and diverse expression of art.

“Impression, Sunrise” (1872) by Claude Monet.

Monet’s series of paintings of later periods such as “Saint Lazare’s Pier”, “The haystacks” or “Rouen Cathedral” are the result of a process of focusing on the study of drawing one object in many different times. different days or different seasons of the year, helped him explore more deeply the influence of light, the movement of time – space in a sense of the ephemeral and incessant movement of life. .

Claude Monet’s work “The haystacks” (1890) was shown in the exhibition “Brilliant Silence” at VCCA.

The audience also had the opportunity to enjoy the two most massive masterpieces in the “Water lily” collection – about 250 paintings made by Monet between 1897 – 1926 in the garden of his home in Giverny, which he loved passionately. The image of the work is enlarged, combined with slow and continuous motion effects, evoking the feeling of an endless flow. Monet’s style of this period is getting closer and closer to abstraction: erasing all lines, boundaries describing concrete things, or demarcation of horizon lines often seen in Western landscape paintings, water – sky – clouds – flowers, all merged in a seemingly chaotic universe, full of hidden memories.

The painting, created by Monet in the last 10 years of his life, at the same time as World War I, is not only a record of nature and landscapes, but also contains the author’s reflections on the past. aging, life – death, the meaning of existence.

The exhibition is also an opportunity for the audience to learn about the post-Impressionist master painter Pierre Bonnard (1867 – 1947), one of the most unique painters of the 20th century and the same person who helped bridge the for Impressionism and Abstraction. His 30 works in the exhibition “Brilliant Silence” are among the best of the post-career period (1909 to 1947), revealing the distinctive qualities of Bonnard’s painting.

The work “Woman with the lamp” (1909) was shown at the exhibition “Brilliant Silence”.

Paintings such as “Interior and Flowers” ​​(1919), “French Window” (1932), “In the Bathroom” (1940)… encapsulate familiar and private scenes of daily life that are not always present. he draws from memory, most of which are shown in small sizes for viewers to observe at close range – in a closer, more intimate atmosphere. His paintings often have “strange” compositions with frames that seem to be arbitrarily divided, sometimes “break” characters appear in unexpected positions such as in “Open Window” (1921) or “Before” dinner” (1924). All create a whole that is full of randomness, like the way memories suddenly appear, not predetermined.

Pierre Bonnard’s work “The French Window” (1932) was introduced in “digital version” at VCCA.

In particular, Bonnard is a master at using color as a means of expressing mood. His object is no longer a scene – a person – or anything belonging to the external environment, but vibrations from the mind, as he himself once said: “Painting must return to its original purpose, is to discover the inner world of man”. The face of the painting is filled with bright, bold colors – revealing intense emotions, so overwhelming that it overwhelms and blurs the subject in the frame.

Image of Bonnard’s work “Coffee” (1915) at the exhibition at VCCA.

Bonnard’s characters have a contemplative look, seemingly not paying attention to the viewer’s gaze, they are so attached to the surrounding space that they seem to blend in, all creating a sense of a world. Isolated, closed, quiet and full of worries.

“Before Dinner” (1924) by Pierre Bonnard.

The works of Monet and Bonnard are interwoven in the exhibition, giving viewers an interesting dialogue of the two styles, two artistic worldviews that are both contrasting and congruent. The same is to capture the moment, one person paints about the vibrations seen in the moment, the other paints emotional scenes; one faces the outside world, the other turns inward. The dialogue prompts viewers to compare, reflect, and associate, thereby expanding new perspectives on art and life.

The exhibition “Brilliant Silence” continues to be open until the end of May 1, 2021, becoming a unique art destination for art lovers during this holiday April 30 – May 1.

Phuong Dung